Why 'The Walking Dead' is Digital Spy's 2012 Game of the Year

For 2012, Digital Spy has named The Walking Dead its game of the year. It may come across as an odd choice to some, that a downloadable episodic game tops the list ahead of a year full of big-budget, blockbuster releases.

But those who have played it know that there is something special about The Walking Dead that makes it more than just another adventure game or zombie-filled shooting gallery.

Zombies are the hot trend right now, seeming to appear in practically every game these days. However, so many of these games miss the mark. Watch George Romero's classic zombie films and it becomes clear that the undead and the gore aren't the real draw.

The best zombie stories focus on the living, using the zombies more as a catalyst to bring out the best, and worst, in those who still survive.

And what a cast of survivors The Walking Dead has! Everyman Lee Everett acts as the story's anchor, as his priorities shift from self-preservation to trying to fill a father-figure role for the young Clementine amid the post-apocalyptic chaos.

As the episodes go on they join a group of survivors that includes some of the year's most memorable characters, from Kenny and Duck to Ben, Christa, Omid and Lilly with her antagonistic father Larry.

Family becomes a central theme in the game, as Lee promises Clementine he'll help find her parents while trying to play that role himself. It also extends to the other survivors, creating a found family of circumstance, with bonds that become every bit as strong as a real family as they work to stay alive against the bleak world of The Walking Dead.

And like a real family, the characters don't always get along. The difference is that players can decide who to build trust with, making the bonds feel all the more personal, and all the more heartbreaking when they fall.

While the characters are what makes The Walking Dead's story so memorable, it's a story that can take many twists and turns along the way. Throughout the five episodes players will be confronted with a choices that will shape the plot's direction, often in unexpected ways that don't show up until several episodes later.

What makes the choices in The Walking Dead unique is that players only have a few seconds to make each one. The urgency takes away the time to deliberate long-term consequences like players can in Mass Effect 3.

There is barely enough time to read the options before making a split-second decision, forcing players to choice based on instinct rather than trying to deliberately game the system for a specific outcome.

It allows the story unfold organically, and still feel like every event has weight after multiple playthroughs to see the various outcomes.

The episodic format is risky for games. Taking an overarching story and breaking it into bite-sized chunks that are still satisfying on their own is no easy task.

And yet The Walking Dead balances it to near perfection, with each episode lasting just long enough to tell its own story arc complete with cliffhanger ending to build anticipation for events to come.

Breaking the story into episodes actually works in The Walking Dead's favour, creating an extra layer of tension as players wait in anticipation for the next chapter.

The delayed gratification also makes each choice feel that much more meaningful, as players will never be sure when their decisions will come back to haunt them and in what form.

The Walking Dead proves that a game doesn't need grandiose set pieces and non-stop action or an epic tale to save the world. The world is already in shambles within five minutes of the game's beginning; saving it is out the question.

But maybe, just maybe, you can save one little girl. The stakes are on a much smaller scale, but that scale gives The Walking Dead a rare sense of focus. And when all of it comes together, it makes for our pick for the best gaming experience 2012 had to offer.